Neeson Murcutt Neille

We acknowledge the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we work and live, and recognise their continuing connection to land, water and community. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging who have maintained Country for millennia.

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NEESON MURCUTT NEILLE

UPDATED-KAMAY–12

Kamay Botany Bay Master Plan

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The Kamay Botany Bay National Park is a magnificent headland site that bounds the wide mouth of Botany Bay. The site is arguably the most significant site in Australia for the contact story in the context of a contemporary nation. With all the changes that have transformed this landscape – the ring of suburbia, the pixelated hillside of the cemetery, the airport and the container terminal with the constant flux of tankers – it is still possible to imagine this place when Cook landed in 1770 and in the millennia before. The contact story, a moment in time, casts focus on big issues looking back and projecting forward, of culture – indigenous, colonial, multicultural – and place – geology, ecology, use and management. Design cannot heal the impact of 250 years of occupation, but it can provide a platform for dialogue and interpretation.

The Master Plan seeks to express a deep respect for Country while recognising the site’s important historical context for all Australians – both from Indigenous and non-Indigenous perspectives. An authentic, open partnership with the Aboriginal community was fundamental and the Master Plan could not have been developed without collaboration with the Community Reference Panel, which included representatives of the La Perouse Local Aboriginal Land Council and Kurranulla Aboriginal Corporation. 

A significant outcome of the Master Plan is the reinstatement of the wharf and future ferry service, providing access from La Perouse. Arrival is by water – akin to Dharawal nawi (canoes), and to Cook’s Endeavour. The Foreshore Path is the key piece of visitor infrastructure and the major organising, wayfinding strategy of the Master Plan. With a fully accessible pathway connecting significant historical and landscape elements and the integration of a new visitor building as part of the journey within a renewed bush landscape, the Master Plan establishes Botany Bay as a site of rebalanced storytelling. 

Sue Barnsley Design (landscape) + Freeman Ryan Design (interpretation)

2019 AIA NSW Reconciliation Prize – Commendation – with Sue Barnsley Design and Freeman Ryan Design

The Kamay Botany Bay National Park is a magnificent headland site that bounds the wide mouth of Botany Bay. The site is arguably the most significant site in Australia for the contact story in the context of a contemporary nation. With all the changes that have transformed this landscape – the ring of suburbia, the pixelated hillside of the cemetery, the airport and the container terminal with the constant flux of tankers – it is still possible to imagine this place when Cook landed in 1770 and in the millennia before. The contact story, a moment in time, casts focus on big issues looking back and projecting forward, of culture – indigenous, colonial, multicultural – and place – geology, ecology, use and management. Design cannot heal the impact of 250 years of occupation, but it can provide a platform for dialogue and interpretation.

The Master Plan seeks to express a deep respect for Country while recognising the site’s important historical context for all Australians – both from Indigenous and non-Indigenous perspectives. An authentic, open partnership with the Aboriginal community was fundamental and the Master Plan could not have been developed without collaboration with the Community Reference Panel, which included representatives of the La Perouse Local Aboriginal Land Council and Kurranulla Aboriginal Corporation. 

A significant outcome of the Master Plan is the reinstatement of the wharf and future ferry service, providing access from La Perouse. Arrival is by water – akin to Dharawal nawi (canoes), and to Cook’s Endeavour. The Foreshore Path is the key piece of visitor infrastructure and the major organising, wayfinding strategy of the Master Plan. With a fully accessible pathway connecting significant historical and landscape elements and the integration of a new visitor building as part of the journey within a renewed bush landscape, the Master Plan establishes Botany Bay as a site of rebalanced storytelling. 

Sue Barnsley Design (landscape) + Freeman Ryan Design (interpretation)

2019 AIA NSW Reconciliation Prize – Commendation – with Sue Barnsley Design and Freeman Ryan Design